Tag: PS Plus

One game you might not see coming is the sneaky HD remaster of Sly Cooper and The Thievius Raccoonus. For a game released on the PS1 back in 2002 this game is still solid. I don’t have the nostalgic feelings for Sly that some of you readers might but it was a free PS Plus download and I was willing to give it a shot. As a fan of 3D platformers, particularly of the Insomniac variety this is quite an adventure. Originally released on the heels of some favorite platformers of the 90’s like Mario Bros., Sonic and Crash Bandicoot. Sly Cooper feels like “the missing link” in evolution. If evolution involved a Spyro game growing into a modern Ratchet & Clank game.One could place Sly Cooper safely into the kids game category based on it’s graphics but to ignore because of that would be missing out on a solid character and fun adventure. Sly Cooper features anthropomorphic characters that are large and charismatic. From the hammer smashing bad guys to the dynamic Inspector Carmelita Montoya Fox each has personality and a specific weakness to look for.

Sly was born into a long line of raccoon master thieves. He is eager to make his mark on the world. The most important thing in the world to Sly is his families historical, great book: The Thievius Raccoonus and someone has stolen it. His childhood buddies Murray and Bentley (a pig and turtle) have become his cohorts. They make up a part of the back story and modestly help Sly in his mission to recover the missing family artifact.

Traverse through six worlds each with 6-7 sub levels that will try Sly’s dexterity. The goal of each level is to steal a key from a suspect in The Thievius Raccoonus robbery. They keys will then open a path to facing the suspects themselves in a boss fight. Most levels involve Sly bouncing around and avoiding detection but there are a few vehicle levels and gun shooting levels mixed in.Controlling Sly is spot on, with simple jumps, double jumps and slides. Sly is armed with his trusty hooked cane which he can use to hit objects and swing on ropes. As a master thief himself he also has an array of stealthy maneuvers he can pull off. When a stealth move need to be before they are indicated in game with blue lights. Simply push the designated button and scamper across a rope, lean in against the wall or pull off some acrobatic jumps only someone with a tail could manage.

While the game isn’t “hard”, meaning kids could play it, it is ruthless. Sly is only given five lives before having to continue and with each life only takes one hit. There are power ups that will allow you to extend the damage you can take by one or two hits but they are not easy to hold on to. Expect to die often, as you memorize what you need to do to complete a level. It’s nice to play a game with stakes like this, with modern games I think we have become too accustomed to regenerating health rather than flawless gameplay.Sly Cooper and The Thievius Raccoonus is the first in line of games. Sly Cooper 2 and 3 are also available on PSN in HD remake form. A new release, Sly Cooper Thieves in Time, is scheduled for early 2013 featuring PS Cross-Play. Sly Cooper cross play will allow gamers to play on their PS3 and then continue that game on their PS Vita when on the go.A classic platformer game with solid game mechanics that holds up over 10 years? An easy B from Gamedae. It’s a quick, good-looking platformer just challenging enough to keep your attention. Taking some points off for a few jagged edges in the graphics the HD re-master didn’t fix. Also, the story itself is a little shallow but it boasts 5-6 hours of great gameplay, character designs and even a few laughs. Pick it up for nostalgic reasons or if you missed it back in the PS2 days. Sure there are more modern choices available for platformer fans, with all the bells and whistles but after playing through Sly Cooper I know you won’t be disappointed.

Sony, where to begin! I was anticipating news regarding games such as God Of War Ascension and Naughty Dog’s The Last Of Us but I got so much more!

Let me start at the beginning after the jump.

The keynote started at 9:01EST with Jack Tretton thanking the gamers and then he gave the stage to David Cage of Quantic Dream (who gave us Heavy Rain). Cage introduces us to their new game Beyond Two Souls. The game’s main character, Jodie Holmes, is played by Academy Award nominated, Ellen Page. She is a mysterious woman with a link with an entity of the dead. We are shown a game intro in which Holmes is being questioned by a local police officer. Holmes is just sitting silently offering no answers but then demonstrates a mysterious power. Just then, the swat team shows up. Cut to a montage of destruction. Beyond Two Souls is “a game about death and what’s on the other side”

Then came the unveiling of the “Toast to Michael”, PS’s viral teaser is revealed to be promotion for Playstation All Stars Battle Royale. This game is Playstation’s answer to Nintendo’s Super Smash Brothers. Available for Playstation Vita and Playstation 3 and works with the new Cross Compatibility between both platforms (CrossPlay) allowing people to compete with friends on either platform via the Playstation Network. The game is slated for Holiday 2012.

Sony announced that they were doubling down with their Playstation Network, with over 200 downloadable games over the next 12 months. They have sweetened their Playstation Plus offerings, for a $5 per month subscription offer, with the promise of 12 free games per month and all of the attendees of the keynote received a free year of Playstation Plus.

Playstation Vita was up next with the announcement of such new games as Call Of Duty Black Ops: Declassified, When Vikings Attack, Retro City Rampage and Assassin’s Creed 3 Liberation as well as the announcement of the availability of Playstation One Classics (yes!) starting with Tomb Raider and Final Fantasy VI! Assassin’s Creed 3 Liberation will be available later this year in a highly anticipated PS Vita bundle. The new bundle comes with a Crystal White PS Vita and a 4 gig memory card.

Ubisoft’s was next on the stage with a closer look at their AAA title: Assassin’s Creed 3. Set during the American Revolution, we see Assassin’s Creed break new ground with, a new character, Connor battling on land & now at sea with full control of a boat and its cannons! Dan Hay was next on stage for Ubisoft showcasing Farcry 3. The PS version will have an exclusive, intense, 4 player co-op campaign.

Playstation Move had its moment on the stage. Presented by Andy House, the new President and Group CEO, is Wonderbook. Wonderbook is a reinvention of the storybook that is interactive using augmented reality. The announcement of JK Rowling’s Book of Spells was the big deal and was showcased by Dave Ranyard. Wonderbook has a lot of potential if I had children I would be very excited about this.

Playstation Mobile is announced in partnership with HTC, a leader in the smart phone industry.

The Keynote then took a turn for the dramatic, on-screen gameplay from God of War Ascension and Todd Cappy simply saying “March 12th, 2013″. The room went dark and the ultra violent gameplay for Naughty Dog’s (Uncharted) The Last of Us began with a ton of violence and bleeped gameplay dialogue.

Overall, Sony’s keynote was pretty eventful. They didn’t make me yearn to go out and buy a Playstation Vita but they did make me feel like I was missing a lot by not springing the 5 dollars a month to subscribe to Playstation Plus. I was left with a need to know more about Beyond’s Jodie Holmes and what the “Dawn of the Wolf” posters are all about in The Last Of Us.

Playstation Plus is a subscription service available to all PSN users with an annual fee. You can pay for a yearly subscription or a three month subscription. This subscription opens up exclusive content like demos, game trails, betas and themes. Sony’s free online access is a big selling point for the PS3. This is a major development for a company that is heading toward full digital distribution and paying for an otherwise free service was quite a hot topic online amongst the undecided. Players want to know the burning question: Is it worth it?

Prototype 1 hour game trail

I’ve been holding off on my official Gamedae review of the Playstation Plus subscription. After a questionable start with some slow releases, I’ve found that after a year, I have collected enough games to make my PS Plus subscription very valuable. I chose the initial deal offered; it started with a free copy of WipeOut HD, a 1 hour full game trail, discounts to PSone releases, a PS mini and a wallpaper. While information on upcoming releases is scarce I’ve been collecting a PS mini, theme and either a game trail or beta every couple of weeks.

DC Universe Online Early Beta

To explain how I reached my grading I’m going to provide a pros and con list after the jump. Maybe it will help you off the fence if you have been thinking about signing up.

PROS

A subscription has the potential to help curb your spending on the PSN

Huge for PSP fans with lots of releases

Magic automatic game updates while your system is off. Even downloading demos and games (I’ve found this to be a huge benefit and worth the sub $ alone)

Looking forward to seeing future releases. Hopefully the quality will continue like the games I’ve mentioned and shown in the pictures. I’ll definitely be resubscribing when the times comes. Are you ready to sign up?